The Blame Game
by CBloom2
Summary: A little one shot based in Season 2 - a talk between two best friends in their time of need. Been trying to publish this for a couple of weeks now but it seems my Tablet has other ideas! Spoilers for mid season trauma for the 2 guys.


**Hey all, this is my first foray into Chicago Fire territory! If anyone knows me from my other stories you know I'm all for the bromance, whether between brothers or friends! So expect Casey/Severide stories from me - although I have been known to throw in some of the other characters too. I will tell you now that I am not a fan of Dawson (sorry), she just gets on my nerves, but because she is with Casey :( she may pop up in some stories - but not this one!**

**This is set post blackout/Katies abduction and assault as I needed a few more moments between the guys. I've probably messed around with the timeline a little so that it fits - I'm sure you'll notice. I'm a nervous poster, especially in a new fandom so I hope you will be kind to me.**

**I don't own anyone that you recognise, just like to play around with them sometimes.**

**Here goes...**

Kelly Severide hated hospitals...with a passion. This was perhaps due to the fact that during the last year his life had been filled with hospital visits for one thing or another. His own stay for his shoulder surgery, Shay when her ambulance had been totalled by an out of control truck, Hallie's death, Casey's near death - Kelly shuddered as memories of his best friend hovering between life and death, invaded his mind. And now, today, sitting in the cafeteria waiting to see his sister - his beautiful baby sister that he had only just found a few months before, lying in a bed bloodied, bruised, battered and worse, at the hands of some punk that had tried to beat up another kid during the blackout, and he'd just happened to stop him and throw him out!

The doctors and Katie's mum were with her at the moment, so he had taken himself off for a coffee. He most likely wouldnt be welcome anyway after laying into Katie's mum about how she's treated her during the years. He had blown his top. She had blamed him for what had happened to Katie, so he had thrown back at her that she had never really cared about Katie, that she was only interested in her other children. He hadn't meant any of it. He had just been so angry...he had not felt so angry in a long time and unfortunately she had borne the brunt of it. Now he just felt numb - how could this have happened? If only she hadn't met him...

Suddenly, a cup of coffee appeared in front of him. With a start, he looked up to see Casey looking at him with concern, "Is this seat taken?" he asked, "I've brought some of the good stuff," he explained, referring to the coffee in front of him.

Severide smirked, "Sit. The good stuff huh?"

"I saw you earlier but you didn't respond to my calls, so I guessed that you were in your own head at that moment, so I took a chance and called at that cute little coffee shop on the corner, hoping you'd still be here when I got back, which thankfully you were, which spared me the embarrassment of being stood with two coffees like someone being stood up on a date!"

Severide chuckled, making Casey smile.

"How is she?" Casey asked his friend.

Severide took a gulp of coffee, "She's ok I guess Well as good as could be expected. She's battered, bruised and he..." he couldn't go on. Suddenly the coffee left a bitter taste in his mouth - his anger returning.

Casey gasped inwardly, "Ah man, I'm sorry," was all he could think to say.

All the time that they had been talking, Severide had been breaking pieces of the styrofoam cup that had held his first coffee. Now he slammed his fist on it, causing Casey to jump in surprise, "I guess I don't have to ask you how you're doing?" he commented quietly. Severide threw him a look that he knew only to well - he was itching to hurt something, or someone.

"Is there someone with her now?" Casey wondered.

"Yeah, her mum and the doc..." he trailed off, looking uncomfortable.

"What did you do Kelly? I know that look..." Casey ventured carefully, hoping that he wouldn't push the other man over the edge.

Severide glanced at his friend in surprise, forgetting that he knew him so well, "I tore a strip off her mum for all the time she didn't spend with her...I was out of line."

"What did she say?" Casey began to get an uneasy feeling.

"She blamed me for all this. She said that if I hadn't come into Katie's life..."

"Ah man, she was just upset, we all say things in the heat of the moment, you know that!" Casey tried to reassure his friend.

"Yeah, I know, but in this case she's right," Severide glanced at Casey, pain and guilt etched across his face.

"No, Kelly, dont't..." Casey tried.

"If I hadn't marched into her life, demanding to get to know her, she would've been safe. It was knowing me that put her in harms way!"

Casey was surprised to see tears welling in his friends eyes.

"Come on Kelly, that's bull! Did you know Keeler would be there that night spoiling for a fight?" Casey didn't give him time to answer, "No you didn't. Look man, ever since you found Katie you've been on cloud nine...did I just use that phrase?"

Kelly chuckled as Casey continued his speech, "Seriously though brother, you've been a lot more relaxed and happy since she came along and if Katie hadn't wanted to get to know her brother, then she would've walked away. You're good for each other. The only person to blame in all this is Keeler and once they get him, he will not see the light of day for a very long time!" Casey downed the rest of his coffee.

"Why me though? Why did it have to be me that got involved?" Severide asked bitterly.

"Because you were doing what you always do...your job - keeping those people safe. I would say right place right time, but I know that's not how it looks to you at the moment. Just be thankful that you got her back in one piece. Anything else can be tackled together, as a family, coz we're all here for you brother," Casey finished.

Severide smiled fondly at his friend, "I know Matt thanks. I just hate seeing her like this you know? Knowing I didn't keep her safe."

"I know how you feel...to a point. I felt like that with Hallie. I'm a fire fighter and I couldn't keep her safe..." he trailed off, not wanting to reignite the memories of that night.

Severide immediately fell into his big brother, protective mode that he always did with Casey. He touched his hand to bring him out of that night, "Hey you tried your best," he offered.

Casey smiled sadly, "And so did you!"

"Touche," Kelly agreed.

Matt began to rise, but a bout of dizziness sent him back into his seat.

This didn't go unnoticed by the other man, "So why are you here anyway? Just to bring me a coffee?"

For a split second, Severide could see that Casey was debating whether to tell him the truth...or not, "The truth Matt," he demanded.

Casey shook his head, "Not today, you've got enough going on."

He moved to get up again, but a hand on his arm stopped him, "Come on Matt, I'm your friend - hell we're brothers - I need to know what's going on!"

Casey knew better than to argue with his friend in his current mood - but, if truth be told, he needed to tell someone. He sighed as he remained in his seat.

"You know that night, when I used up another life..."

"Yeah, that guy who was gunning for me - you stopped him..." Kelly remembered, troubled again at the memory of his best friend slumped on the floor after stopping the guy Keeler had sent to get him.

"Well, during the tussle, I kinda knocked my head on the wall," Severide nodded, his memory of that night had never faltered.

Casey glanced at his friend, trying to guage his frame of mind, as he moved to the next part of the story, "The next morning, there was blood coming out of my ear..."

"What?! Why the hell didn't you say anything?" Severide's eyes clouded over with anger and concern.

"It's not the sort of thing you bring up over breakfast. Anyway, this morning was my check up and..."

Severide began to feel uneasy, he didn't like the way his friend was pausing, as if to find the right words, "Matt...what did they say?" He could feel a knot of anxiety forming in his stomach.

" She said that it could happen after a major head injury. I need to be careful not to knock it again...I guess I'll need a harder helmet from now on," Casey chuckled, hoping that would be enough to pacify his friend. He hadn't want to dump all that on his friend, but he couldn't help but feel slightly relieved that someone knew. But Severide wasn't fooled for a moment, "You're not telling me everything Matt - I can tell."

Once again, Casey contemplated whether to tell him everything, "I'll go find your doctor and demand to know everything - you know I will," Severide insisted.

Casey felt a pang of affection for his friend. His sister was in hospital having gone through one of the worst experiences ever, yet he was still adamant that he wanted to be there...for him.

Casey sighed deeply once more, " Not only did she tell me to be more careful - she said that if I were a sportsman..." he paused, sucking in a deep breath, "She would be talking retirement!"

There, he'd said it - didn't sound any better the second time of hearing it.

Severide looked stunned! "Geez man, it's that serious?"

"Only if I keep knocking my head, so like I said, I'll have to have a harder helmet to wear," he smiled, trying to keep things lighter.

"What are you going to tell the Chief?" Severide asked, unable to comprehend 51 without Casey there.

"Nothing yet. There's not really much to tell. I'll just play it by ear for a while. Will you back my play?"

Severide contemplated making him tell the Chief, but then recalled how he played his shoulder injury and knew that if he'd asked him to, Casey would've had his back.

"I'll back your play brother, for now. But listen Matt, this is your health we're talking about - your life, and if you put that in jeopardy I will not keep my mouth shut. We lost Andy and I'll be damned if I lose you too - is that understood?"

Severide sucked in a deep breath as emotions began to surface that he knew would engulf him if he let them. Matt was his little brother - there was no way he could survive losing him.

Casey, for his part, could see all that written across his friends face. It had taken them a long time, after Andy's death, to get back to the way they were now - he wouldn't jeopardize that for anything!

**That's it! Hope it was ok. Not sure if I got the characters quite right. Please review so that I know how I did. Thank you in advance for reading.**


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